New York restaurants drop trans fats ahead of ban

By Edith Honan

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New Yorkers are worried that when a citywide ban on artificial trans fats goes into effect on Sunday, French fries will lose their crunch.

But many of the city's restaurants found alternatives to the artery-clogging frying oil and spreads weeks or months ago and say most customers never noticed.

"Some people don't even know, and very few people have asked about it," said Peter Dafnos, manager at Westway Diner, which replaced trans-fat-laden shortening with canola oil six months ago. The change will cost him an additional $1,000 per year, he said.

Burger King said it will eliminate trans fats in New York by Sunday, McDonald's started removing them from New York restaurants in October last year, and Wendy's stopped using them nationwide in August 2006.

"The customers (in taste tests) seem to be quite happy with the way the fries are tasting," Burger King spokesman Keva Silversmith said.

Trans fat increases so-called bad cholesterol in food and clogs arteries. Health officials have advised consuming as little as possible and some cities have banned artificial trans fats from restaurants.

Eighty-three percent of restaurants had stopped using artificial trans fats for frying by June 1, up from 50 percent in 2006, the New York City Department of Health said on Friday.

Restaurants will have a three-month grace period to comply with the ban. The health department said it would not issue citations until October 1. Fines range from $200 to $2,000.